Maximum Ride: Iggy Alone
by katklaws
Summary: -Post MR2- Iggy gets shipped off to the School but manages to escape with a few odd companions. While in hiding, they must find the flock and evade the Erasers but the enemey seems to be closer than Iggy thought before... -considering revision as of 5/4-
1. Separation

**So, here's my first MR story! I just adore Iggy and I've had this idea brewing for the longest time. ("wo-OH-oh, for the longest time!" I love that song.) anyways, please read and review! -♥ katklaws**

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_Chapter One: The Separation_

"_I can't see!" he cried, agony ripping his heart and burning his eyes. They heard him banging against the bars of his crate and his furious cries that soon faded into broken sobs. _

_Max gazed sadly across the room, watching the young boy curl into a ball and sob into his arms. His baby blue eyes were wide and unfocused, staring into the darkness he'd see forever and ever..._

_She could not reach out and comfort him as she so wished she could. How many times had they watched creatures around them break down and give up right before their very eyes? Would this other bird-child be next?_

_They listened as the sobs became stifled whimpers and tiny moans. After awhile of silence and stillness, the young boy sat up and his eyes flickered slowly this way and that, seeing not but endless darkness. "I can't see," he gasped, running his hands over his pale face then over the bars and floor and walls, "There's nothing ... nothing but darkness ... "_

_Among the occasional jarring cry of pain or stifled whimper from fitful dreams, Max found her ears training on the boy's sobbing as he faded in and out of sleep. "I wish I could help you," she whispered, her heart aching, as well as her muscles, and bones, and brains, and everything else her tired mind could think of... "I wish I could help you all."_

:-;-:

The blow was swift and punishing, well aimed for Iggy's throat. Each bleeding wound burned for all it was worth and the smothering scent of hot metal and gunpowder clung to the air. He heard Angel cry out as he fell down, down, down through the air. Though everything was unseen by him, he knew the ground would inevitably come.

The invincible Max's voice was broken and struggling for volume, Iggy could tell, "We have to scram _now_!" The Gasman screamed Angel's name but all the sounds were fading in and out. Iggy's quick mind pieced it together in a nanosecond; Angel's cry, Max's broken voice, the smell of gunpowder ...

Without thinking, Iggy shouted as the wing-beats rose farther and farther above his head, or maybe he was dropping farther and farther below, "Is Angel shot?!"

Then the thunder came ripping over his eardrums and Iggy used all the energy he had left to right his body and set his blond wings flapping in synch. Just in time, too, because if he hadn't, he'd have done a face plant at two hundred miles per hour. No, he fell against the side of the Erasers' van and slammed into the ground doing only twenty, maybe thirty.

The bullet wounds in his body screamed in agony and Iggy could no longer deny their persuasive ways. A cry of pain tore from his throat just as the wind was knocked right out of him.

They'd all been caught by surprise, by Erasers who didn't want to play around anymore. Erasers with guns. They'd had enough time to fly away, fly faster than their clumsy, tacked-on Eraser wings could manage, especially since Max had spread her warp speed powers over the whole flock. Well, almost the whole flock.

It took Max a moment to realize what the Gasman was screaming about but when she saw the Erasers swarming over a prone figure on the ground, she realized that one tall, blind kid of the bird mutants wasn't in her bubble of warp-speed.

Max shifted Angel in her arms, who bled freely from the bullet wound in her side, and glanced at Nudge who was barely able to keep her wings up, even with Max's assistance. Her right shoulder and arm were lopped awkwardly and blood droplets were snatched up by the wind. Fang's face was tight and pale and Max saw that he had nearly avoided a bullet, though it had clipped his shin painfully.

Half the Erasers on the ground still had their guns pointed upwards and Max's heart stopped as she realized what she had to do. Fang's eyes were cold but he could barely keep the pain in their depths under control as it too dawned upon him what must happen. The Gasman looked from Max to Fang and realized what they'd silently agreed on.

As his scream of defiance grew in his throat, it was ripped away, and all sound soon left them, for warp-speed was too fast for sound...

Iggy slumped onto the ground in defeat as he was torn at by Erasers, as Erasers tore at each other to get to him. Suddenly, a voice stabbed through their snarls. It was female, Iggy knew, but there wasn't anything warm about it.

"Step back, you blundering fools!" she snapped and they all fell quiet. Even through the blood scent, the gunpowder and the pleasant meadow-y smells all about, Iggy instantly recognized the white coat stench. It was sharp and antiseptic, but the voice! The voice struck a long forgotten memory buried in Iggy's subconscious.

"_Ugh, what a failure!" the voice barked, "Get it out of my operating room." Another voice filtered in, hesitant and meek, but_ she _sent it a scalding reprimand. "Don't question me! I might pick up on this night-vision project later but this subject is ruined. Get it out, get it out!!"_

Iggy's sightless eyes widened as he recognized the woman who'd taken his vision forever. He could practically feel her sneer. "So, I see this failure is still alive. Not for long, in the condition it's in. No! Don't kill it. I've been wanting to work on this vision project for a long time, why not use an experiment whose already had experience?"

Their cruel, cold laughter hurt so bad and struck so deep, Iggy couldn't breathe. _I'm going to the School again. They're going to torture my eyes again. Where's the flock? Where's the friggin' flock?! Why aren't they __**saving me**?_

:-;-:

"I hate you!" howled the Gasman, bunching his fists and pounding Max in the stomach. She winced but stood solid, taking the blows as he vented. "I hate you, I hate you, _I hate you!_" But the Gasman soon collapsed against her, sobbing in grief and fury. The only thing he could see was Iggy motionless on the ground, Erasers fighting to rip out his throat. "How could you leave him? How could you do that to Iggy, to one of the flock?!"

Max was on the verge of shoving him away and screaming about how much it had torn her apart as Iggy had disappeared under a swarm of hairy wolf mutants. But her arms wrapped around his shoulders, rocking him slowly as he sobbed into her shirt, "Everyone was in danger of really getting hurt, Gazzy, like _dying_. Nudge could hardly fly and Angel, well, _you _saw Angel. We're going back to get Iggy, I promise, but we had to get out of there."

The Gasman clutched her sleeve, gazing up at her with eyes bright and blue and pained, "But they don't want _us_, they want you and Angel. Why would Iggy still be alive if they didn't want him?"

Cold fear seeped over Max as she thought about this factor again, but she had to be strong, to be invincible for the flock. "They took him away so there is still hope. We didn't see him die, all we saw was him get put in their van."

Fang looked up finally from his perch, eyes dark and resolute, "So that means we're going back."

"Yes, we're going back to the School," Max said, her voice faltering as she said it. Despite what they'd been through, they all looked up in horror. "But first, we have to be travel fit."

Her gaze fell onto Angel, who was thankfully asleep. Her shirt had been pulled up to her ribcage and white gauze stained red wrapped around her middle several times. It had only been a flesh wound, which had bled a lot but was overall not life threatening. Nudge had given them all a scare though. Upon landing, she'd passed out and gone into shock, shivering and sweating and losing blood all at once. She was alright now, pale and shirtless, but patched up somewhat.

Nudge asked suddenly, weak and trembling, "Will Ig be there?" Max choked back her fears and nodded.

"He'd better be, or many, _many _Erasers will pay."


	2. Desolation

**Blargh! I had a lot of trouble this past day on ff. chapters being in wrong places, documents saying i have -30 days left before they get deleted and all sorts of general chaos! Well, i hope this chappie works. Please read and review! -♥ katklaws**

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_Chapter Two: The Desolation_

He'd been in and out of consciousness for days as the whitecoats tried several new components on his senses. When he came to, the first thing he recognized was pain.

Iggy sat up slowly, gritting his teeth against a yelp, head throbbing, and realized there were bandages over his eyes. He felt them carefully and instinctively took stock of where each pain was coming from. First of all, there was the all-too-familiar hunger pangs that told him he hadn't eaten in awhile. Stemming from his eyelids to the center of his brain, was a stinging, burning ache, more so in his right eye than his left.

Instantly, he knew something was wrong. His right eye ... It felt- odd. He couldn't quite put his finger on it but it seemed colder, unfamiliar, even metal wouldn't have been too wrong a word to describe it.

"Max? Gazzy?" Iggy called out automatically. "Nudge? Are any of you out there?" Meeting his words was silence, save for the shallow breathing of an experiment directly to his left. Nothing but the antisepticky smell of the School permeated the room. It was then that the previous few days came crashing down into his memory and his throat tightened in despair.

"I'm all alone," he whispered, placing his hands on the crate floor in front of his. Suddenly, furious rage boiled up from his gut and left his limbs burning. "Grrrrraaaaah!" he snarled, the sound erupting from his chest as he ripped off his bandages. The resulting event took the voice right out of him.

_He could see._

In the darkness of the keeping room, with his right eye sealed shut, he looked about. The single fluorescent light looked bright as day. But, he could only hold his eye open for a few seconds before falling to the ground, writhing in agony. _Guess it hasn't been long since surgery_, he thought miserably, feeling sick and clammy after that bout of pain. He ran his fingertips over his face again and felt several strategically-placed, clean-cut scars around his eyes. _Now why can't I ... open my right eye ... _

Iggy felt it twice just to be sure and realized that there was no stitches holding it shut but merely, the muscles in his eyelids were recovering from surgery or adapting to a new eye. _A new eye? Where did that idea come from? _Iggy thought to himself.

Suddenly, Iggy's sharp ears picked up footsteps. They were quick and purposeful, almost in synch and Iggy's gut churned in sickly fear and hate.

"Here it is, my latest achievement!" the female doctor that had operated on him so long ago said with a revolting note of triumph.

"More like you're only achievement," the other person, a man, growled. Iggy felt a bit of satisfaction that someone despised this woman like he did. Not as much as he did, Iggy doubted anyone could, but with the same distaste.

Suddenly the footsteps approached Iggy's cage and he heard their deafening shoes clack to a stop right in front of him. He allowed a mask of indifference to steal over the emotions in his face.

The woman crouched, Iggy could hear the fabric of her clothes scrinch, and she said in a sickeningly sweet tone, "Come here, my little achievement. Show Mr. Leblanc your beautiful eyes.

Iggy couldn't stop himself. "Not in a million years, scum-sucker."

"Why, you insolent little wretch!" the woman snarled and ripped something from her belt. Iggy could hear her moving and wanted to know what exactly she was doing, but he didn't open his eyes. He wasn't going to give her that satisfaction.

Then a sharp object prodded his upper leg and before Iggy could react, an electrical shock ripped through his nerves. He yelped in agony and jumped, banging his head on the ceiling, then scrambled back as far as he could. She gave a twisted little laugh.

"I can still reach you, you know. Come forward now and show me your eyes."

Iggy felt the welt on his leg and realized slowly that no matter how many shocks he took, she could go on forever while he could not. It was an impossible battle and he nearly sobbed in defeat. With hesitation, Iggy crawled forward and tilted his head up to his tormentors. Then, he opened his eye.

There was a gasp of amazement as Iggy gazed on the revolting pair, his whole body screaming in pain. He kept his eye open for a few more moments then shut it, shuddering weakly, stomach churning in nausea from the pain that he could do nothing for.

"Stunning work, doctor! You've repaired a nonfunctioning eye. Simply brilliant work," the man gushed. This woman had been pretty useless before but now her abilities were being shown. "What about the other eye? Why didn't it open?"

The woman sounded very haughty and proud as Iggy backed away, wiping a cold sweat from his forehead. "Well, I knew I could repair one eye but I've been tinkering with some new inventions and I decided to replace the other with a mechanical eye. It's body must still be adapting to it but once it has, it'll have the perfect vision for fighting."

"Well, we'll see how it turns out."

"Now, sir, I was wondering if I could go beyond just eye sight. There are so many ways to enhance the other senses and create _new _senses. May I have the funding for such an undertaking?"

A growl grew in the man's voice. "You know my hands are tied with these experiments. The higher-ups can't have any mistakes _again_. And then of course you'll need new subjects and you know as well as I do that the government is closing in on the missing kids."

Iggy dared to creak his eye open and see the look on her face as she said brightly, "No, actually, this subject is the only one I need." With that, the pair walked away and to Iggy's horror, he could hear the approving tone in the other man's voice.

He slumped to the floor in numbing despair. _What are they going to do to my senses? _he wondered, shaking. _Will I lose my sight again, or my hearing? Or my sense of touch?_ There was no flock around to share his pain. Iggy was all alone on this one.

:-;-:

Sitting sedately across from Iggy, a medium-sized creature watched through half-lidded eyes. _These bird kids, _it thought, irritated, _knowing so much freedom, seeing so many things, and what good has it done to him? Nothing. All he's got now is a metal eye and a dog crate._ Then the creature tipped its head to one side, human eyes blinking in an oddly sympathetic gesture. _But still, I wouldn't know what its like to be free then lose it all. I've never really _been _free..._

It soon got to its paws with a luxurious stretch and yawn, first extending its forelegs out in front of it then arching its back. Its body was flowing and seamless, save for the occasional odd crick or unexplainable pain spasm. It winced as its shoulder smarted for no apparent reason, _Maybe my time is coming._

_Well, sitting about moping will do no good for me or him_, it thought with a tail-flick. _Might as well get as many links as possible._

"Hey kid."

The sudden appearance of this voice, a male's, rasping from nonuse but otherwise lovely in tone, made Iggy jump. His early-year training kicked in. _Give away nothing, get as much info as possible, show no weakness_, the young boy went over the mental checklist and realized he'd done all of the above already. So, taking a Max-like chance, he replied.

"Who's there?"

There was a low rumbling chuckle, almost a purr. "Who wants to know?"

Something familiar in this way of speaking was affable and positively annoying at the same time. Iggy gave in to his irritation and growled, "Awfully cheerful for someone who's either a disgusting wolf-mutant or a screwed-up experiment."

"I'll go with screwed-up experiment for my identity, though probably not as screwed-up as you," the new voice said dryly at first, then became quite conversational, "Well, actually, I don't know who's worse off at the moment. Our situations are nearly the same: trapped in dog crates at some wacko lab with several glitches, so to say, for each of us. Let's just say, the enemy of my enemy is my friend."

Iggy scowled and did what he'd do in any other situation- replied with a smart remark. "Ah, I'm so lucky to have one so learned as a _kennel _mate."

"But you are all alone, if I'm not mistaken?" The voice was not scornful and yet anything but sympathetic at the same time. "Well, now you're not. Admit we're on the same level here, mutant experiment to mutant experiment."

Instantly, that vague liking Iggy had identified earlier returned but his stubborn streak was terribly, well, stubborn. The way the stranger was blunt and said that they were equals, despite him being blind, was welcomingly bracing.

Iggy dared to open his eye the tiniest bit and get a glimpse of his new, um, friend, maybe. Instantly he blinked in recognition. "Max saw you at the Institute, the wildcat or something, that would live in Africa, with the human eyes... "

The serval hybrid tipped his head and then recognized the bird kid individually as the features matched to a picture in his memory. "Yes, yes, they called you, uh, Izzy, no, Iggy. Nice to properly meet you, Iggy."

Before the pain completely defeated Iggy's will power, he locked the image of the feline hybrid into his memory. A smallish cat, claws and fangs and tail included, with human eyes. Yes, human. Blue- just like his. They were still blue ... right?


	3. Infiltration

**Okay. You all have the right to beat katklaws-shaped piñatas** **with baseball bats because I really, really deserve it. I'm so, so, so sorry that I haven't updated according to my pledges but, it was just this chapter! It fought my the whole time I wrote it! I've never come across such a rebellious chapter in all my days. Please show me I am forgiven in the form of reviews. (Or say I'm not forgiven, as long as they're in reviews.) -♥ katklaws**

**I also want to personally thank _Piratelizard101_ and _Nightwingstar_ for their elaborate reviews and words of support. I would have never posted chappie 3 without the encouragement!**

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_Chapter Three: The Infiltration_

Iggy wasn't sure what jolted him out of slumber first- the yowl directly next to his sensitive ears or the explosion from the far side of the room. His eye shot open instinctively, only causing a trickle of pain now, and he saw sunlight streaming inside from a gaping hole in the wall. The cat he'd met earlier now hissed through the bent bars of his crate, "Let's move!"

Fumbling for the lock which he knew from experience would be to difficult to break, Iggy whispered back, "What? Who blew that up?" Suddenly, a broad paw pressed against the lock Iggy was struggling with and he felt a ripple of energy flow through it. A small crack grew across the surface then suddenly, it was snapped by an unseen force and the door fell open.

It was against his philosophy to waste time so Iggy opened his left eye and shot into the air. There, in front of his crate, was the wildcat with human eyes. Whitecoat voices were filtering around the door and Iggy was torn between fleeing now or returning to the ground to get it.

Saving the regret he'd soon feel for this later, Iggy dove expertly, his instincts of flight flowing back and scooped the feline up. It gritted its teeth, clutching at his shoulder and chest with its claws but refrained from thrashing. Iggy's face was set with grim determination as something dangerous, like a shot from a stun gun, whizzed past his head. With a flourish of aerodynamic acrobatics, he shot out the gaping whole, spinning torpedo-style for speed. Sensing the void above him, Iggy locked his arms around the heavy creature and shot as high and far away into the sky as he could, leaving the School far behind.

As the sight or sound of any civilization at all vanished in their flight, Iggy relaxed, barely ruffling his wings and soaring across the sky.

"Hey, Iggy, slow down, would ya? I'm getting nauseous... " the feline put in, trembling in his arms, and Iggy complied. The last thing he needed was a view of the cat's breakfast, after it was eaten.

As the adrenaline dropped and left them both feeling shaky and ill, Iggy narrowed his eye at the cat. Fang's scornful voice weaved through his head, _You didn't even ask what he knew? Don't you think that was a little suspicious? _The cat, who had just looked down and swallowed said breakfast back down, returned Iggy's skeptical stare with a questioning blink.

"So," Iggy said, looking away, "What's your name? I didn't ask yesterday." The cat snorted at the question. It seemed ridiculous to him.

"Name? Who has a name when they're a screwed-up clone-experiment-thing with no one to give it to?" he growled airily, "I was just LS-02 to those- those whitecoats, as you called them. I have more colorful words for'em, truth be told."

"Well, what do you wanna be called?" Iggy prodded, "I can't just keep calling you the cat-thing that helped me break out of the School." Now that he thought about it, he should ask what kind of explosives were used on the keeping room, or find out if there was some hidden power the serval had neglected from informing him about.

The cat bobbed his head from side to side, as if weighing options in his head. "Oh, I don't know. What's a good name for me? Not one that's too common, and not one that sounds lame..."

_He sounds more like Nudge than a spy created to rip the flock into tiny little pieces!_ Iggy though to himself, letting it ramble on as it listed conditions for the name it would choose. It was safe to assume this serval-cat thing wasn't on the School's side. This cat was acting way too natural and open with him to be hiding secret alliances with evil.

"I don't many names," Iggy replied, a sense of urgency making him strive to leave the subject and join the flock again. What was he supposed to do in this situation? He'd never been faced with someone that was trusting and relying on him so much. There weren't any prying eyes on him, scornful if he should care about something or disapproving if he got attached. For a moment, hanging on the air with a cat bundled in his arms, all alone and able to see, Iggy felt as if the world was farther away than it had ever been before.

Iggy angled his body so that the air hit him a different way, tipping him so that he coasted parallel to the ground. Half paying attention, Iggy turned to his creative side for help. "Why don't you think of things you like? I suppose names can be anything you want them to be."

The serval fell silent for a few moments, then murmured against the wind, as if suddenly uncovering a dark memory, "I'll figure it out later, when it matters. When we meet the rest of your flock, I suppose."

Though slightly puzzled at the turn of attitude, Iggy nodded approval and gazed across the hot, dry terrain, centering his internal compass. He could go to the last place he'd been with the flock but, knowing them, they'd already be heading across the country. How long had he been out? How many hours, days or even weeks had he been in and out of surgery and unconscious, unable to keep track of time?

Eventually, Iggy decided against going back to South Carolina, where he'd last seen the flock. He'd at least been at the school for a few days and there was absolutely no chance of the flock staying in one place for so long with one of their siblings in the hands of whitecoats. But how was he going to contact them?

As Iggy drifted through his thoughts, the world drifted away. The slight twitches in his feathers and muscles shifts in his shoulders happened instinctively until the cat began calling his name. When Iggy didn't look up, the cat sank its claws down and elicited a yelp from him.

"What?!" Iggy cried, flapping suddenly and hovering vertically again.

Impervious to the boy's irritation, the cat blinked and indicated at something on the ground.

"What's that?"

Iggy cocked his head to one side and dropped altitude. An idea sprang into his mind as people the size of ants moved over the concrete-colored town, speckled with dashes of glinting cars and green treetops. Feeling a surge of hope, Iggy dove onto the unsuspecting city, his feline friend yowling at his sudden aerobatic maneuver.

-:-;-:-

"Are you gonna ask me to get into a _crate _next?" came the serval's furious growl.

Iggy shifted the black sunglasses on his face and held the harness and leash out, gently trying to persuade the cat.

"Look, they have laws about wildcats running loose in the cities. It'll only be for a moment and then you never have to do again." _Unless we go into another city_, he added silently to himself, not anticipating the event.

The cat had lowered its head, face shadowed, eyes glinting in the dark alleyway, and squared his shoulders. Iggy watched the fur along its spine bristle and its tail lash at the very notion of being restrained, then settle at the logic. Finally, with an irritated tail twitch, the serval sat down and sighed a low, voiceless growl. Iggy secured the harness around the cat's body and, with a quiet apology, clipped it into place.

"Now if you have to tell me anything, just tap my foot. If normal people see a talking cat, they'd freak so we're going to avoid that." Wings tucked in taut under a jacket, Iggy gripped the leash, took a deep breath and sent out any fears or doubts. He blinked slowly and stepped onto the sidewalk.

Sunlight dazzled his eyes. It was amazing, seeing the colors flash in the light, even glancing at all the different faces looking oddly at his 'pet'. He watched cars whiz down the four lane road at the heart of the city and saw little children squeal with delight at the sight of this strange cat-beast that was so different from Fluffy at home.

Watching their eyes shine in happiness, Iggy felt choked. Had the Gasman made that same expression when he was younger? Did Angel ever make that face now? Iggy had lost his sight six years ago and suddenly he felt like he was eight all over again. He'd glimpsed Angel once for all the time he'd known her and she'd been an infant then! What did she look like now? What did they all look like now? Sure, he could tell them apart by the texture of their feathers and the rhythm of their footsteps but he could've been able to do just that by looking.

Something prodded his foot. Iggy jolted from himself and looked down. The cat had managed to put on the most peeved and least feline-like expression that said, _Hello? Pay attention!_ The once-blind boy looked up and saw an odd looking building with different sections of different colored concrete that soared into the sky: the public library. It wasn't huge, at least in comparison to New York city's public library. While he hadn't seen the building, he'd been able to get a general idea of the size by the way their voices had taken forever to bounce back to him.

This was going to be the hard part. Marching up the stairs to the front doors, he boldly held the door open for the serval cat and went up to the front desk. Muttering out of the side of his mouth so quietly only someone as sharp eared as a cat or Iggy himself could hear, he briskly approached the front desk.

"Just play along, okay? If they think you're a trained, er, companion of mine then they'll let you in. They have a thing against cats in libraries or something." Looking right at the surprised and somewhat vexed-looking lady behind the counter, Iggy continued, "Um, good afternoon, ma'am. I was wondering if you could direct me towards a computer that I could possibly use for a moment." The women frowned.

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to leave your, um, pet outside," she said as kindly as an annoyed person could. Iggy merely let a warm smile appear on his lips.

"Oh, nonsense. He wouldn't hurt a fly and he knows not to harm any equipment," Iggy wheedled, "Just watch." Not waiting for an answer, he stepped back and led the serval away a bit then ordered, "Sit."

Flashing him a blink that said _You owe me_, he promptly sat still. Iggy blinked a _Please don't screw this up!_ and said "Take three steps back." The woman's eyes widened as the cat complied. "Now wave to the nice lady." The serval, with only a discreet snort to show his ill temper, sat back on his haunches and flapped a paw.

While the woman stared speechlessly, Iggy smiled again and nodded, "See? Perfectly harmless. I'll just be using these computers over here, if you don't mind." Behind him, Iggy heard her struggle for words as apparently her view on feline intelligence was shattered.

Iggy settled at the tables farthest away from the doors, where prying eyes could not reach, and logged on under guest. After a brief moment of searching, he found a web page under the title of '6 Kids, 12 Wings and 1 Blog!' Glancing at the newest postings, he could see that the flock was hinting to the people that he'd gone missing but hadn't outright said so. The last thing they needed was the world to know that one of the flock, who was blind and probably a tad lost, was separated from the rest of them. Logging in an anonymous guest, he typed up a blog message to the flock.

_Ig here. Don't panic guys, I'm free now. Not to cut anything short but time for Flock Talk. Asu, Gragnot plozzus, cologmor, Denoppolus. Libra doorstep foremost, xii poleax mynoot- 30 breaths, circadian. -Ig out. _

_PS- I missed you guys._

Iggy and Max were the most fluent in Flock Talk but everyone knew most of the code by heart. It had saved their lives or at least gotten them out of trouble too many times to count. He looked over the message twice, putting in intentional typos that the only the flock would understand and taking out anything that might give too much away to not-so-friendly viewers.

With a swipe of the computer's history and a friendly nod to the still-shocked desk attendant, Iggy marched out. As soon as they exited the building, the serval growled most terrifyingly, "You owe me _so _big. Don't think I won't hold ya to it!"

:-;-:

Fang was perched high in a sprawling tree, the flock settling uneasily around him. They didn't want to rest but they had to if they were going to launch an attack on the School and survive, they needed to recuperate from their cross-country flight. Balanced around them on the branches was a fast-food feast that could have easily fed a group of fifteen with leftovers. The second-oldest of the flock had just opened his laptop -they were perched literally on the edge of city, near enough to a Starbucks for an internet connection- and was sipping at a cup when suddenly he choked and sprayed soda from his mouth. The flock all around him leapt up with wide eyes at his outburst.

Coughing, he motioned for them to come look. Angel bounded over neatly and sat beside him, leaning on his leg for a closer look. Only a hopeful gleam flashing on her eyes revealed her desperation to bring back Iggy. The Gasman sat warily on his other side, dark circles under his eyes and an overall aura of fadedness showing how hard it hit him. Nudge scrambled over, dark hair bouncing, and balanced against the Gasman, who gave a half-hearted grumble of resistance.

Max stood tall behind them on a broad limb, sharp eyes darted back and forth as they read the posting.

Fang wiped his face with the back of one hand and muttered, "I shoulda told him not to use Flock Talk where everyone can read it. Who knows who'll figure it out now?" Nothing but release of his fears, shown in the minute tremble of his shoulders, exposed his utter relief.


	4. Explanation

**AAH! I am in fact, still in existence. So, finally, here's an update. I know, I know, I stink at living up to my updating promises but I can't control when the creativity flows enough to get a chappie written! So please, enjoy.**

**And my thanks this chappie go out to _Kimsa Ki-Lurria_ and _Waoka_, for their ever-so generous reviews. This chappie was really fueled by those! (even though it took so long to get this up!)**

* * *

_Chapter Four: The Explanation_

The sky was brilliantly clear, dotted with bright stars in a black velvet expanse. Iggy sat nervously on the front steps, his right eye sealed to the world, as the serval paced before him. For some reason, the feline was agitated, a low growl throbbing in his narrow chest.

Iggy finally narrowed his eyes at him. "Would you stop fidgeting?" The serval stopped, checking for strangers who might overhear a cat talking, then faced his semi-human friend.

"You're asking me to stop fidgeting? Take a look at yourself!" he growled, eyes indignant. Iggy looked down and realized he was bouncing his knee and tapping his fingers in a wave on the steps. "What's wrong with you?"

"Nothing. I'm fine," Iggy replied quickly, his gaze trailing upwards. There was no way he could tell his friend how terrified he was. Yes, the flock would be happy for his sight but even he didn't know what his mechanical eye was capable of. It still burned when he tried to see through it, though he knew his body was almost adapted to it now.

Would his sight be normal in the eye? Fat chance. It was mechanical. Surely it would have some crazy features that would freak his family out. Maybe it could see through walls, or shoot lasers. Iggy shuddered, remembering that day so long ago when Erasers had found him and Gazzy at their mountain home. The Gasman had told Iggy about the Eraser's laser eye putting a burn on his chest. Iggy could still smell the distinct scent of smoldering cloth and hear Gazzy's sharp yelp at the moment it reached his skin.

Iggy felt dark, fearful thoughts riddle his gut, and he found his deepest fear, one he knew had plagued Max when the voice first came to her head. Could this eye somehow control him? Make him betray the ones he cared for most?

As Iggy put his fears into thoughts, he nearly moaned in despair. He'd never be safe. The flock would never be safe. Everything, he heard, everything he saw, everything he thought- it would all be relayed to the School and they'd track the flock down wherever they went and it'd be all his-

A distinct flapping carried across the cold air. Iggy's head shot up and he became completely still. The street before the library was deserted, save for a boy and a large cat.

"Iggy!"

Gazing upwards, Iggy felt a rush of warmth. Diving towards him from high in the air was the flock. The Gasman led the charge, tackling him to the ground. Angel squirmed under his arms as Total leapt about, talking in excited yips that were hardly understandable. Nudge sat behind him, hugging and rocking her lost friend, crying with happiness. Max, scrubbing her eyes, kneeled beside him and attempted to squeeze his life out of when he came up for air. Fang hovered nearby almost hesitantly before sitting beside Iggy, slumped with relief.

Iggy closed his eyes and felt around him. Sitting across his chest crushingly were the slight bodies of Gazzy and Angel. Angel's feather's were soft as kitten fur, probably white as snow (even though he'd never really seen snow before). The Gasman's feathers, though Iggy would never tell him, were only slightly less soft than Angel's and only a bit longer. Iggy felt them brush his fingertips and he was surprised to find them a bit rough, unkempt. In fact, as he felt all of their wings, Max's smooth and stiff, Fang's coarse and strong, they were all a bit bent out of shape and wilted.

_They missed me_, he realized with a heart-wrenching lurch. _They missed me until they were sick_.

Suddenly he felt stiff whiskers against his ear. "Are you going to open your eyes?" Iggy stiffened, hating the serval at that moment for bringing it up. Why ruin this moment? Why shatter this perfect reunion? After another heartbeat of drilling the sensations into his memory, he opened his eye.

A gasp rippled over the group before they could stop themselves. Leaning forward, Gazzy, sitting in his lap, held Iggy's face in his hands, as if holding him still so he could get a good look. Iggy stared in wonder at his friends around him, looking them in the eye individually. Max's stern face, Fang's dark eyes stunned, Nudge sniffling and for once speechless, Angel looking distressed and confused but, most upsettingly, the Gasman's eyes suddenly flinty.

The leader in Max took charge, putting some control on the situation. "Iggy, can you ... see now?"

Iggy felt a quiver of emotion. It had been years upon years since he'd actually seen Max talking. "Yes, but I don't know what's wrong with my other eye. It hurts to open it." Iggy paused. "I don't think it's a natural eye. It might be ... mechanical or something."

Silence hung over the flock. The Gasman looked about worriedly, knowing that everyone was troubled by Iggy's guess because they knew Iggy was almost never wrong. Summoning up his courage to pierce the quiet, he looked Iggy in the face and held up his arm.

"Look, Iggy," he said, pointing proudly to a dark, jagged line on the back of his arm, "I got this at the fight where they took you." There was a soundless, collective sigh as they relaxed, all of them silently thanking Gazzy for restoring a bit of peace. Hovering in the back of Fang's and Max's minds was the fact that they had to be wary around one of the people they loved most, starting right then. They knew the most trustworthy person could be the betrayer, and they might not even be aware.

Seeing their sibling with his newly-given sight, looking over his friends, so shaken with emotion, they hardly wanted to believe that he could hurt delicate Angel or innocent Gazzy. For a heartbeat, Max's imagination was filled with violent darkness, maybe with Nudge the victim or even Total, and cold seeped through her blood.

No, she didn't want to see her brother become the betrayer but she'd never live with herself if one of her flock suffered because of the School. Looking at all their scars, Max knew they'd all been hurt, but that had always been because of an outside force, from _outside _the flock. There had been the scare when the voice had begun to speak to her but this ... She had no idea of what was going to happen.

"Ahem, Iggy?"

The tall, lanky boy sat up quickly, looking around till he found the serval. Elegant and stiff, ears twitched back in annoyance, the feline slowly stood and approached. His eyes were bright and intelligent, drawing the flock's gaze to his own. His dark spotted fur, sleek and well-groomed, flashed dully under the moon's light as he settled above Iggy on a higher step. He waited in silence until Iggy realized he was shy.

Iggy motioned him over and he hesitated, then got up slowly and padded down to Iggy's side. "Hello," he said quietly, acting nothing like the fiery wildcat he'd been in Iggy's company, "It's a pleasure to meet the flock." As they gazed, waiting for some sort of explanation, the cat ducked and flicked his ears in embarrassment. Iggy knew when he was crying out for help by this point in time.

"Um, well, he doesn't have a name yet but he broke the lock on my crate and somehow arranged it so we could escape. I carried him here and we've kinda been looking out for each other." Iggy reached out and laid his hand on the feline's shoulder.

Max realized that Iggy was asking if the cat could stay. They already had to worry about carting around Total and making sure he didn't get hurt in fights. If this cat couldn't fend for itself, she wasn't sure they could afford to have it around.

But since when did they do anything that made sense or increased to flock's chance of survival? She thought it would be Angel to find another mutant for their motley crew.

"Angel?" Max prodded but she was already working on it. The serval and the girl stared at each other and the air grew thick with tension. Angel's brow creased and the cat's eyes narrowed as if looking at a bright light. Then Angel swooped forward and wrapped him up in her arms, the cat shaking and fighting tears.

"How did you do that?" he whispered, as she just held him close. "Do you know now ... about her?"

"I won't tell anyone," Angel promised as solemnly as a six year old could, leaving everyone else, including Iggy, lost. Then she released the cat, letting him curl up under Iggy's arm, as she turned to address Max. "He's coming with us."

Max sighed in defeat then smiled her best in-flock smile. This cat was one them. He could be trusted with knowing what Max looked like when she smiled at someone she considered family.

"Welcome to the flock."


End file.
